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Article
Publication date: 1 May 1993

Craig C. Lundberg and Donald D. Bowen

Cast in the form of a theatrical script, offers commentary on theforces supposedly contributing to the rise and fall of T‐Groups as partof the professional preparation of OD…

Abstract

Cast in the form of a theatrical script, offers commentary on the forces supposedly contributing to the rise and fall of T‐Groups as part of the professional preparation of OD faculty and practitioners.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 6 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 1969

CHRISTOPHER MOLANDER

The need for increased managerial effectiveness is not in doubt. The behavioural sciences however, have yet to play their proper part in the training of management. T‐group

1896

Abstract

The need for increased managerial effectiveness is not in doubt. The behavioural sciences however, have yet to play their proper part in the training of management. T‐group training is an example of the practical application of behavioural science techniques. It has a great deal to offer in helping managerial groups work more effectively.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 3 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Article
Publication date: 1 April 1971

TERRY MORGAN

FEW PEOPLE CAN HAVE WORKED IN AN ORGANISATION FOR ANY length of time without hearing, or perhaps even expressing, comments like these. Human relations: the oil that keeps the…

100

Abstract

FEW PEOPLE CAN HAVE WORKED IN AN ORGANISATION FOR ANY length of time without hearing, or perhaps even expressing, comments like these. Human relations: the oil that keeps the organisational wheels turning — or, more often it seems, the grit that makes the machine shudder.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 3 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Article
Publication date: 1 November 1970

FOR SOME YEARS there has been a tendency for the number of industrial workers to decline and that of clerical staffs to increase.

Abstract

FOR SOME YEARS there has been a tendency for the number of industrial workers to decline and that of clerical staffs to increase.

Details

Work Study, vol. 19 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0043-8022

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1972

Dan Gowler and Karen Legge

In part 1 of this paper we used the concept of the occupational role to illustrate some of the contributions social scientists make to the better understanding of the problems…

Abstract

In part 1 of this paper we used the concept of the occupational role to illustrate some of the contributions social scientists make to the better understanding of the problems confronting members of work organisations. The problem we were particularly interested in commenting upon was the difficulties surrounding the inter and intra‐organisational mobility of labour, and we used an analysis of the structure of the occupational role to examine the processes which result in the inability and/or unwillingness of employees to change their job.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 1 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Article
Publication date: 1 January 1974

KEN NIXON

The first article on the subject, which appeared in the August issue of Industrial and Commercial Training, described the development of a training course in BEA for Passenger…

Abstract

The first article on the subject, which appeared in the August issue of Industrial and Commercial Training, described the development of a training course in BEA for Passenger Services Staff. The aim of this training is to improve personal service. Its most important element is role‐playing of typical interactions between staff and passengers; these are recorded on video‐tape and replayed for viewing and discussion. A good deal of reading, thinking and research was done before and during the training development. Visits were made to the training centres of several airlines, in Britain and the USA; research workers in both countries were also consulted. Five relevant views of the subject will be examined. These are: • the concept of social skill — Michael Argyle • the analysis of verbal behaviours — Neil Rackham • T‐group training — particularly the research by Cary Cooper and Henry Odie for the Hotel and Catering ITB • transactional analysis — work in Pan American Airways and American Airlines • applied learning in management training — by Mel Sorcher and Arnold Goldstein of Syracuse, USA A reading list giving references to these ideas and authors is given at the end of the article. The intention here is briefly to describe these views, evaluate their relevance to Customer Service Training generally, and show how they have influenced the philosophy and the design of the BEA training. Naturally, more weight will be given to one view than to another in the analysis that follows, but it should be emphasised that there is no intention to choose nor to reject any particular theory or training development. The different approaches are often complementary, each provides insight into the problems of human interaction.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Article
Publication date: 20 April 2012

Airi Rovio‐Johansson and Marie Lumsden

The purpose of this paper is to investigate students’ qualitatively different ways of understanding basic economic relationships in three undergraduate courses in the discipline…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate students’ qualitatively different ways of understanding basic economic relationships in three undergraduate courses in the discipline of accounting.

Design/methodology/approach

The theoretical frame is variation theory, which is a learning theory about the different ways students understand the learning object (in this study, basic economic relationships). The instructors chose a learning object which was investigated under two different teaching conditions – the traditional lecture model and the adjusted Learning Study model. Two student groups in a Business Programme (one group admitted the year after the first group) were identified as a comparison group and a target group. The two groups were comparable in various relevant parameters. All students took three required accounting courses. In the comparison group, the instructors used the traditional lecture model; in the target group, the instructors used the adjusted Learning Study model. The first year of the study was used for training the instructors and for the preparation of teaching prerequisites.

Findings

There were significant differences between the two groups’ examination results in the three courses. Students in the adjusted Learning Study model group performed better. The conclusions have scientific implications for students’ understanding of the subject and educational implications for teaching in terms of new teaching methods and revised curricula. The findings are valuable to professional instructors/lecturers in higher education.

Originality/value

The findings and methods of this study contribute to the international research on empirically based didactic knowledge of subject content in higher education. Even though the subject content is specific in the study, the methodology of variation theory is applicable to other disciplines.

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2006

Paul Lyons

This study seeks to: involve team members in part of the actual design of training for their own team leaders; improve team leader knowledge and skills; and demonstrate the use of…

4572

Abstract

Purpose

This study seeks to: involve team members in part of the actual design of training for their own team leaders; improve team leader knowledge and skills; and demonstrate the use of skill charting (SC) for learning and performance improvement.

Design/methodology/approach

Using focus groups of team members and q‐sort methodology we were able to have team members identify practical performance elements regarding the behavior of their team leaders. Integrating these performance elements into the training design for team leaders and using SC as a training tool, we were able to compare two groups of team leaders: one group (the study group) whose training focused, specifically, on the team‐generated performance elements and another group (the traditional group) whose training was focused on general, team leader performance elements.

Findings

In the perceptions of the team members, the S group team leaders, following training, performed more effectively regarding: response time, positive reinforcement, and focus on desired behavior of team members, than did the T group team leaders. Mean scores of ratings of performance were higher for S group team leaders than T group team leaders on all variables save one.

Research limitations/implications

Owing to the nature of SC training, sample sizes could not be large; that is, sample sizes could not exceed 35 participants per each condition. Statistical tests are thus influenced. Other limitations involve the obvious time gap between actual training and the subsequent changes in behavior and performance. The study does offer considerable support to other research that makes use of SC training tools.

Practical implications

The activities undertaken in the study serve to involve team members, recognize their knowledge and skill, and empower them via decision making and personal recognition.

Originality/value

This study points to ways to involve team members directly in performance improvement and learning.

Details

Team Performance Management: An International Journal, vol. 12 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1352-7592

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 1971

NEIL RACKHAM

In August 1967, Mr C was a middle manager with a large industrial concern in the north of England. To judge from his personnel record, he was well above average in ability…

Abstract

In August 1967, Mr C was a middle manager with a large industrial concern in the north of England. To judge from his personnel record, he was well above average in ability although his performance was sometimes patchy. Still, he was only 34 and the firm's training manager was understandably anxious to offer him every help. Mr C's own diagnosis was simple enough: ‘My problem,’ he wrote, ‘is not getting the best out of my people, but getting anything out of them at all. Unless I'm breathing down their necks, nothing gets done — so I am forced to do almost everything myself. Mr T's (the training manager's) priority should be to train my people to do an adequate job.’

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 3 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Article
Publication date: 1 January 1972

PETER REASON

What I want to do in this article is to capture the sense of community, of love, of learning, of struggle, of despair, that occurred during a weekend of laboratory training. I am…

Abstract

What I want to do in this article is to capture the sense of community, of love, of learning, of struggle, of despair, that occurred during a weekend of laboratory training. I am conscious that this task has been attempted many times before, and not always with great success, but for some reason I cannot articulate, I need to try for myself. The incidents I wish to recount took place during a lab held for the first year group of the PhD program in Organisation Behaviour at Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, Ohio. This group had been together for about four weeks. It is important to place this lab in the context of the department's strong concern for creating a community in which the all‐round professional growth of its members could take place; thus one of the objectives of the weekend was to experiment with different ways of relating with each other and develop the kind of community relationships we thought would be most useful over the next three years. Another context of the weekend was that it was held as part of a class titled Personality Theories and Development Processes. Don Wolfe, who takes this class, and who was our trainer for the lab, is concerned that we should learn about personality and growth, both intellectually and through experience, so as to be in a position to develop our own personally meaningful theories as we experience our own processes of growth. Thus another objective of the lab was that it should facilitate our growth as people; it was to be oriented towards PERSONAL GROWTH.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

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